How the Prophet ﷺ made a first impression

When Muslims today seek to emulate the practice and example of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, it’s for a very simple reason: he was a brilliant guide.

Despite the 1400 year gulf between our community today and the time in which he lived ﷺ, our attempts at resolving issues typically pale in comparison to the legacy he left behind.

The recent phenomenon of people attempting to discredit the reputation of the Prophet ﷺ has been met with a number of different solutions. From violent riots to claims of supporting ‘free speech’, to simply ignoring the issue, we’ve tried it all.

And yet, the Prophet ﷺ had quite a simple answer. He made a good first impression.

The reality is, this issue was extremely common at the time of the Prophet ﷺ. When still living in the city of Makkah, the Islamophobes of his time knew that if people ever got the chance to speak to him without first thinking he was a lunatic, he would likely convince them to join the religion of Islam.And so they tried to be proactive. They would lie to those who entered the city and claim the Prophet ﷺ was a sorcerer and a magician, and that they should block their ears if they saw him.

And yet, the people did still end up meeting the Prophet ﷺ. And it was simply the effect of meeting him that convinced many people to join the budding religion.

In the case of Husayn ibn Salaam, the chief Rabbi of Madinah, it was not a lengthy theological discussion, or a fully fleshed out social policy, that convinced him of the merits of the Messenger and his message.

Simply on seeing the face of the Prophet ﷺ, Ibn Salam said: “this face is not the face of a liar.”

By having his honesty and character so evident upon him, the Prophet was able to undermine even the most spurious accusations made against him. And in this, we have a clear solution to the troubles we currently face.

Instead of worrying so much about challenging the false accusations against our Prophet ﷺ, make sure you simply represent him well. Give a good first impression to those who want to meet him for the first time, ﷺ.